Alabastan Nights
by Vergina-spva
Summary: Ace is a lonely thieving streetboy, until he meets some interesting people. One of them might even be more then interesting. Written from the I-perspective of Ace. (eventual) Marco x Ace, but will also contain a hint of Ace x Vivi. Some centuries back Arabian-like AU. Rated T for now, because of language and sexual hints.
1. Yup, that's me

_Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you a new stories from the depths of my imagination (really, not that deep)..._

**_Alabastan Nights_**

_This is a multi chapter story about a lonely boy that lives on the streets of an Arabian-like country, Alabasta. Along the way he will meet interesting people and one certain man could even be more than interesting... but let's save that for later.  
_

_(you probably won't be surprised to hear this story was based off Aladdin... I was listening to 'A whole new world' when I came up with this_

_Thanks to Aerle and Thérèse for beta'ing and thanks to MyLadyDay and SophieStaar for creating cover images (I'll rotate them)! _

Disclamer: I don't own One Piece_)_

_Now, let's first meet our main character and get introduced to his world. *insert Arabian music here*_

* * *

**Chapter 1: 'Yup, that's me'**

I stretched my arms above my head and looked out over the city. It had awoken some time ago and I could see the market slowly getting crowded. It was like every other day. The sun was burning down heavily on the people, but it didn't stop them from going out into the streets. Of course, everyone needed food and it wasn't healthy to stay inside every day either.

I stood up and walked towards the darkest and coldest corner of the room. The crowded city was in stark contrast to my apartment – if you could call the place I was living in an apartment. It was just an empty room inside an empty building. The government had declared it unsafe. They said it could collapse at any time, but I couldn't care less. It meant I had a place I could live, out of sight from everyone else and if it would collapse, I would just find another place. It wasn't as if I hadn't done that before.

I'd reached the corner and sighed. Just one apple, that was all I had left. I took a bite of it. _At least it's still edible._

With the apple still in my mouth, I put on my thin, black coat. Because even _I_ needed protection against the burning sun. I hung my green and black striped bag over my shoulder, cast a last look on the few blankets I claimed as my personal possessions and jumped out of the window, ignoring the fact that it was the fourth floor.

When I almost reached the ground, I let small flames burst out of the soles of my feet, warming up the air underneath them and giving me a soft landing. I walked into the alley as if I hadn't just fallen out of the sky. I was used to doing things like that without being noticed. I had to. They couldn't know I lived up there. In that light it was good that the tower I lived in stood in a back alley and was surrounded by mostly uninhabited buildings.

I reached the end of the alley quickly and meddled into the crowd at the marketplace. first I walked around to watch all the stalls. Some were selling carpets or fancy pillows, some the newest Alabastan fashion, but most of them were selling food. Which was good, because food was what I needed.

I carefully looked around, without anyone seeing me. The regulars knew me. If I wanted to get something from them, I had to make sure they didn't notice me until it was too late.

That moment my attention was drawn to a big group of people crowded around a stall I hadn't seen before. Curiosity got the better hand of me and I sneaked through the mass of people to get a peek of what the marketer was selling.

"And this genie will grant you three wishes," the salesman said with a mysterious tone to his voice. I saw three shiny, though a little dusty oil lamps standing on the table before him. "But be careful what you wish for, since you have only three of them. After that, the genie will be free and gone."

I couldn't care less about genies. Sure, three wishes would be nice, but everyone knew genies weren't real, that they belonged in fairytales. Despite this fact, I still saw some of the customers look very interested at the bronze objects. Well, I was interested too; those looked very valuable. And if this man could sell them, I could do it too, right? I had let my eyes fall on the middle one, that was decorated with little turquoise stones.

"Things like this could end up very bad, when they get into the hands of the wrong person," the vendor continued his story, probably to make the 'good' customers more interested. I couldn't help but snort. Those rich bastards wouldn't know what good to do with three wishes. "Have you ever heard the story of the genie of Gol D. Roger, King of Thieves?"

I froze at the hearing of _that_ name. The name of the man I hated.

"This man, the devil himself, had a genie too, named Silvers Rayleigh." I snorted again. Rayleigh had been his right hand, not a genie! Everyone knew that! Still, I couldn't help to keep listening. "Roger had two terrible wishes, giving him the biggest treasure in the world, while killing and hurting a lot of innocent people. However, no one really knows what his _last_ wish was, but it must have been at least as terrible as the others. However, his genie was freed, that's for sure," the salesman said in a dark voice.

I made my way back through the crowd. I didn't need to listen any longer to those stupid stories. If that man had had a genie, he sure as hell could have done better things with it. I could think of a lot of wishes that would have made _my_ live less of a hell, for a start.

I returned to walking around over the marketplace, pushing thoughts of _that man_ aside. I had to think about the best way to get what I needed. I wanted the lamp and some food; bread, fruit and preferably some meat. Well, it would be best to start with the lamp, since the marketer was new and thus not aware of the threat that was me. I grinned. It had been a while ago since I had set something on fire, so it would probably take the people some time to realize it was my doing. Yes, I knew what I had to do.

I made my way back to the genie-man. When I stood next to the stall, I heard the salesman negotiate with a tall man about the middle lamp. But _no way_, that lamp was mine! I opened my bag, so it would be ready to throw my loot in.

Before anyone had noticed me, I shot a flame out of my hand, immediately setting the whole table on fire. When everyone started to panic, I let my body become one with the flames and quickly snatched the lamp away, before it could get damaged. I lit the stall next to it too, to make it more believable and then sneaked back into the crowd. I ran towards my next victim, which didn't stand out, because a lot of people were running from the fire.

I got at the baker's stand, grabbed two large breads – which the baker didn't even see, because he was cautiously watching the fire – and put them together with the lamp into my bag. I continued my way to the fruits seller. I picked up some bananas and – hey, a pineapple! Pineapples have always been my favorite!

"Oi!"

I looked up at the fruit seller's face and saw immediate recognition in his eyes. I grinned at him and began to run again.

"Catch him!" the marketer yelled after me. "Catch him, it's Fire Fist!"

I laughed. None of the locals would be so stupid as to catch _me_, someone with devil fruit powers and one of the few of whom the powers _weren't_ suppressed by the government. So unless there were any officials close by, I didn't need to worry.

I ended up at the butcher. "Hello," I greeted him.

The man gave me an unimpressed look. "Portgas," he said displeased, after which he started looking around, probably to see if there were any city guards within earshot.

"Yup, that's me," I said. "I would like that piece of meat," I pointed at the largest piece he was selling, "and a chicken."

"Fuck off, Portgas. You're not getting anything. I'll give you one chance to leave on your own. If you don't, I'll call the guards," he warned me. That wasn't very nice of him.

My face hardened. "I give _you_ one chance to give me the meat, or I will burn this thing down."

We looked each other in the eyes for a few seconds, neither of us giving in. Then the butcher opened his mouth. "Guards! Guards! He's here!"

I cast a look over my shoulder and saw three guards heading our way. "Shit," I hissed. I quickly grabbed the chicken and set the rest on fire. Letting the flames guide me up into the sky, I landed on the rooftop of a nearby building.

I had almost immediately lost the guards. They couldn't jump or fly this high, except for a few higher ranked ones. That meant the guards had to use the stairs to get up here and by that time I would be long gone. In that prospective I was _glad_ only higher government officials were allowed to use devil fruit powers. They didn't trust the lower ones with it. I had to be careful with my own powers, though. If I used them as much and in the way I did the past few minutes all the time, I would have one of those higher ranked guys after me very soon.

Well, who was I fooling. They would come after me sooner or later anyway. Even if they would never find out about my lineage. I was a devil fruit user, so the longer I kept my powers, the more I became a threat to them. Or so they thought.

I walked over the rooftops for a while and when I thought the coast was clear, I got back to the ground again.

It wasn't like I was planning on overthrowing the government or anything. I just didn't let myself be oppressed by them. My freedom was the most important thing to me. So a threat? I didn't think so. Though I did like to provoke them a bit, every once in a while.

I had reached the tower in which I lived. I looked around to see if there was anyone around and when this was not the case, I entered the building, this time just taking the stairs. One moment I almost lost my balance when the stone crumbled beneath my feet, but I managed to keep myself from falling and walked all the way up to the fourth floor.

I dropped my bag on the floor, sat down and started to unpack it. The food should be kept as cool as possible, so I put the pineapple into the dark, but drafty corner, together with the bananas and the bread. I looked at the chicken. I shouldn't wait too long to eat it, because it would soon not be _safe_ to eat anymore. Actually, with these temperatures, I should roast it within an hour. However, when looking around, I could find only one little twig of wood. I should get some more wood or oil first. Wood was better to cook on, but scarcer too. Of course I could just roast the chicken above my hand or my feet or my _dick_, for that matter – I got to try the last, one time – but that would cost a lot of energy, so I'd rather use wood. It took some time, after all, before a whole chicken was done well.

I burned a place on the floor free of dust and other unwanted things and placed the chicken down on the clean spot. Then I got up and went out again, taking my bag with me.

I walked around the city for a while, but didn't find anything I could use. Besides, the guards were probably still looking for me, so I couldn't create a havoc by stealing something again. So that left me only one option.

I stepped into the desert, which began directly outside the city gates. About seven miles away, there was a big oasis. There I would be able to find enough wood.

It would take me hours to go there and get back if I just walked, so I used my powers to speed up a little. A few minutes later I reached the forest. I walked through it, enjoying the coolness of the shadows the trees cast. After a little while I reached the big lake in the center of the oasis, laying at a little lower level than I was currently standing. The view was beautiful; different kinds of birds were flying around the lake or bathing in it, the water shining in the sunlight. A group of nomads let their cattle drink out of the lake.

Once again I asked myself if I couldn't live here. There was shadow and water at hand at all times, after all. But I knew I couldn't. I needed stuff from the city sometimes too, but the most important reason: I would be bored to death. So I just enjoyed the few times I went here.

I smiled and went down to the lake. I had been so stupid to forget to bring my canteen, so I had to sneak into the nomad camp. It would be a waste after all, if I didn't refill my water supply while I was here.

Most of the nomads were at the lake side with the cattle or just chatting while refilling their own water. So it didn't took much for me to sneak in and steal one of their waterskins. I quickly filled it and then went back to the forest to collect some firewood.

A little less than half an hour later I was back at my living place – I would say 'home', but that would give the place too much credit.

I took the spear I had made out of wood and shove the chicken onto it, started the fire and sat down next to it, holding the chicken just above the flames.

I sighed bored. Sometimes I wondered what life was all about. Just surviving? Was I even meant to be alive? I mean, other people obviously thought I shouldn't be and I didn't have any friends either, nor family. But still, I was here, right? Sure there must be _some_ reason for that? I didn't really feel like just giving up my life or letting myself get caught by the government, either.

Maybe I should just try a little harder to get friends? _Ha_, who was I kidding? Nobody would want to be friends with me if they knew who my poor excuse of a father had been.

Well, for now I just lived for my freedom. That was really the most important thing to me at the moment. I would see what else would come to me.

After having waited a very long time, I decided the chicken was done and _damn_, I really enjoyed that meat when my teeth sank into it and it touched my tongue. Even though it was just chicken meat without any herbs or spices, it still tasted delicious.

It didn't take me too long to finish the whole chicken. I was licking my fingers clean, when I suddenly remembered something else that was still inside my bag. When I was certain there were no traces of chicken flavor left on my fingers, I leaned over so I could stick my hand inside the bag. I took out the bronze oil lamp and put it before me on the floor.

I should polish it a bit, wipe the dust off of it. Then at the same time I could check if there was a genie inside it after all. I laughed. Not that it would be.

I got up and fetched one of my blankets, since I didn't own anything that was made to clean with. I sat down by the lamp again and picked it up, first inspecting it a little. It was really beautiful. Especially when it would shine some more.

I carefully wiped a streak clean of dust. Then waited. Nothing happened. I wiped clean a few more streaks. Still nothing happened. Why was I even expecting something to happen, anyway? Ah, this was bullshit. There was no fucking genie coming out of it!

I began to rub it more fiercely. I had to make it shine as much as possible.

But then, suddenly, something _was_ coming out of the oil lamp. It looked a bit like smoke or fog, but it wasn't quite that. It quickly formed some sort of cloud that kept growing and growing. Slowly it took on the form of a human person.

_No way!_ There really _was_ a genie inside the lamp?! I was sure my jaw hit the ground by the time the genie had totally come out. It had the form of a man, wearing light blue clothes. He had a scar running in a half circle around his left eye, a goatee and a reddish brown pompadour hairstyle.

The genie coughed dramatically. "Finally, you let me out! Damn, it was dusty inside there!" He looked at me and cocked his head in confusion, when he saw my surprised face. "What? Didn't expect me?"

* * *

_TBC~_

_I hope you liked the first introduction! Please leave a review if you liked or disliked it (though please only constructive criticism if you didn't like it)._

_I will have to warn you all... Marco will not appear before the third chapter. Some other interesting people will, though ;)_

_So, I hope you liked it and will return for the next chapter._


	2. You're the princess

_It took a little while, but here's the second chapter! :D I hope you'll all enjoy!  
_

_I'm just gonna upload every chapter as soon as it is done and beta'd and not use a set time I should update, because my study work will suffer from it if I do. I will assure you, however, I will never ever abandon anything I've started. I hate unfinished fics, so I will not let that happen. If I haven't updated a story at least once within three months, you can safely assume something terrible happened to me :P_

_That said, Thanks to my beta's Aerle and Thérèse! Also, the cover image for this chapter (as it'll be for all even chapters) was made by SophieStaar! :D_

_Please all enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

_**Chapter 2:**_

_**You're the princess**_

"Hello?" The genie waved a hand in front of my face, but I was still too flabbergasted to respond. The man in front of me looked around as if he searched for something, but didn't find it. When his gaze turned back to me, he looked worried. "Oi, kid, you're the one who freed me from this lamp, right?"

I snapped out of my trance. "I'm not a kid! I'm twenty."

The man smiled. "Ah, so you haven't lost your tongue."

I snorted in response. "So, eh, you're a genie?" I asked nonchalantly.

The man spread his arms to give me a good look of him. "Do I look like a genie to you?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I've never seen one before."

The brunet sighed. "Yes, I am a genie. And now you are my master. You can call me Thatch."

"Thatch?" I parroted, still not really sure what to think of this whole situation.

"Yes, that is my name. You've got one too? Or should I call you 'master'?"

A smirk formed itself on my lips. "I like that." But when I saw his disappointed face, I couldn't help but laugh. "The name's Ace."

Thatch grinned. "Well, Ace, I'll explain to you how this works."

"Oh, don't bother," I told him before he could really start. "I know the rules. I get three wishes, you're gonna let them come true and after that, you're free of any attachments, right?"

The brown haired man scratched the back of his head. "Well, yeah, though we usually don't really put much focus on the last part. People don't like to lose their chance to wish for something important, so they often don't wish more than two things, if they know that," the genie explained.

I laughed again. "Don't expect me to be any different, 'cause they're right."

Thatch grinned. "Yeah, that's what I thought. But I quite like you, so it might not be so bad." He sat down in the windowsill. "So let me know if you've thought of a wish."

I snorted. "How can you say you like me? You don't know me," I said, shaking my head.

Thatch smiled at me. "Just a feeling."

I stared at him. He would change his mind about that soon enough, I was sure. Only now, in this light, I saw that the man was still slightly see-through, the only clue that he was a genie and not human.

I sighed. It wasn't hard to think of a wish. In fact, I already knew what I wished for, but I didn't know if that was even possible. Besides, could I trust this genie? If I told him my wish and he opened his mouth to others about it… "Do you work for the government?" I plainly asked.

Thatch raised his eyebrows. "Are you kidding me? I despise the government. I wouldn't grant them a wish even if they would have been the one to free me from the lamp."

I chuckled. "Can you do that? Denying wishes, that is."

"Not really, but I could try," he said grinning.

Laughing, I sat down next to him. "So if I told you some sort of super-secret, you wouldn't tell anyone?"

"I'm very good at keeping secrets," he answered.

My lips curled into a smile. Somehow I knew I could trust him. "You'd better be, 'cause if you'd tell, I would have to kill you."

My genie laughed out loud. "I'd love to see you try." He laid his hand down on my shoulder. It felt like a real hand, but when I looked at it, I could still see my shoulder through it. "You can't kill me; I'm a genie. But I like your attitude."

"Huh, there must be _a way_ to get rid of you," I mumbled, but then continued to speak aloud again. "So, why don't you like the government?" I asked just to be sure.

Thatch seemed to think about this for a little before answering. "I've heard and seen enough of their actions to hate them. Besides, they want to get a hold on every genie that's out there," he explained. "So it was pretty brave of that market man to sell us so openly. And I'm very glad you stole my lamp."

"How'd you know I didn't buy you?" I asked a little suspicious.

"I can hear everything that happens around my lamp, so it was pretty obvious." The brunet crossed his arms. "So, are you gonna tell me that secret or not?"

I looked at the clear blue sky. "I wish to have a conversation with my father."

Thatch remained silent for a few seconds. Then he unfolded his arms and suddenly had a bottle in his hands – containing alcohol, by the smell of it. Where the bottle had come from all of a sudden was a mystery to me. "Who's your father?" he asked after which he took a gulp of the liquor.

I looked at him for a moment, still not sure if I should tell him. Also, still wondering where the hell the bottle had come from. I shook my head, but told him anyway. "Gol D. Roger."

Half of the drink came back out while Thatch choked on the other half in shock. It took him some time to get his voice back. "You're Roger's son?!"

I rolled my eyes. For sure he would change his mind about liking me now. "Unfortunately, yes."

He gave me a scrutinizing look. "I guess you do have some similarities."

_What?! _That damn genie could better be lying! I had always hoped I didn't look a thing like him.

Thatch suddenly looked a bit intimidated. "Not that many, though. You probably resemble your mother way more."

I calmed down a little. "So are you gonna grant me my wish or not?"

Thatch sighed. "I can't."

"Of course you can't," I said with a healthy dose of sarcasm to my voice. "It's my own fault, I shouldn't have been Roger's son."

"It's not because of who he was, let alone who you are!" the brown haired man protested. "It is because he _was_. Is not anymore. I can't resurrect the dead. I can't bring back anyone who has passed. Even if you were the king, I couldn't get your father here. " Thatch sighed. "People often want genies to bring back their loved ones, but that's just not within our power. We can't kill people and can't get people back from the death. We also cannot turn someone's heart to love or hate. And that means no world peace either." He looked me in the eyes. "Can't you just wish to be rich or something?"

"Why would I want that?"

He looked around the room. "Well, you look like you could use some more money."

"And then?" I asked a little annoyed. "What do I do when I'm rich?"

Thatch laughed. "I've never been asked that question before!" He shook his head. "What do you think about buying everything you want, going everywhere you want, never ever have to worry about anything anymore… Oh, and I forget the most important: You can get any girl you want." He winked at me.

I couldn't help but chuckle. If one thing, at least this genie knew how to cheer me up. "Dear Thatch, have you ever looked at me? I already _can_ get every girl I want."

The brunet screened me over and then shrugged. "I guess so."

I thought about it for a while. A careless life did sound sort of nice…. Though, boring as well. Maybe I could wish for _some_ carelessness?

"Want some?" Thatch held out the bottle of liquor he had been drinking from.

I took it from him and sniffed cautiously at it. "Where did you get that?"

The man looked at me as if I had just asked the most stupid question ever. "I'm a genie. I can get a bottle of whiskey from wherever I want."

Satisfied with that explanation I took a gulp of the beverage. I enjoyed the burning sensation it gave down my throat. It had been a while.

Suddenly it hit me. I took another sip of the whiskey and then handed the bottle back. "I have an idea. If I would wish I'd be protected from the government inside this building forever, would that mean it couldn't collapse either?"

The genie seemed to think about my question. "I guess so. If it would collapse, you couldn't be inside it anymore, so you couldn't be safe inside it either."

"Alright, then that's my first wish," I said confidently. At least I'd have a place I would always be safe. Maybe I could start calling it a home then, after all.

Thatch grinned. "Your wish is my command!" He snapped his fingers.

I didn't see anything happen and after a few seconds I looked at him. "Did it work?"

The brunet frowned. "Of course. Don't question my powers."

* * *

"It's so good to finally be out again," Thatch said.

Somehow he had managed to convince me in taking him with me the next morning. I was planning to go out on my own, but apparently I was wrong. I had taken the lamp with me too though, since Thatch couldn't move outside a range of two hundred yards of it, but mainly so that he could go back any time if someone came too close. Currently we were just walking through an deserted alley, however, so no problem there.

"You've always been in this city?" I asked him.

"No, no, it's been a very long time since I've been in Alubarna," he answered. "But it seems like nothing has changed much."

I looked curiously at him. "How old are you?"

The genie shrugged. "Dunno, it's hard to keep track when you're locked inside a lamp half of the time. Pretty old, I guess." He smirked. "But you wouldn't tell, right? I still look like I'm eighteen."

The laugh left my lips before I could suppress it. "Yeah, sure, Thatch."

We reached one of the main street. "You gotta go back now," I told him.

"Nooo, people won't notice!" the brown haired man tried, giving me a face as if I had just suggested the weirdest thing ever.

"Thatch, you're see-through." I got the lamp out of my bag. He sighed, but did what I said after all. Within a few seconds he had disappeared.

I walked into the street in search for something worth stealing, something that could get me through at least the next few days. When I looked around, I almost immediately spotted two men dealing something. The tallest of the two gave the other some money and got a mysterious little bag in return. For a moment I was torn between going after the mystery-bag or the purse of the shorter man. However, I had no idea what was inside that little bag, so I decided to go for the money.

I walked up to the man as if I wanted to ask him something. He looked curiously at me, but before he knew it, I had already pulled the purse off his belt and ran.

I soon noticed how he began to run after me and that he was pretty fast too. But I was faster.

Quickly I shot into an alley and to my delight I saw a wooden crate standing at the beginning of it. I pulled it to the center of the path and set it on fire. That should slow my pursuer down for at least a bit. And that bit would be enough for me.

I ran further, but suddenly someone came out of a side alley and stopped in front of me. She stood there firmly with her arms spread, blocking my way.

"Miss, you'd better step aside." I didn't want to push her aside if it wasn't strictly necessary.

"No, I will not let you pass!" she yelled back. It surprised me and made me stop in my track. "You're going to return that money to that poor man first." So apparently she had seen me stealing.

I snorted. "Poor man? Don't make me laugh." Slowly I walked towards the girl. I couldn't see her face very well, since a large hood covered her head. I cast a nervous glance over my shoulder. My pursuer wasn't in sight yet, but I could hear some tumult behind my little fire. "Miss, do you have any idea who I am?"

"You're Portgas D. Ace, also known as Fire Fist Ace," she said, still standing with her arms spread.

"And you're not afraid of me?" I asked with an amused smile.

"No," she answered, but as I took another step forward, I could see she was trembling slightly. Though this could, of course, also be because of anger. "You're a thief and you're going to return that purse to its rightful owner."

"Sorry ma'am, no can do," I replied chuckling. Why did she think she could stop me?

Suddenly I heard a hiss behind me. I immediately recognized it as the sound of water ending the fire. "I'm sorry," I said before taking the girl into my arms and jumping up to the roof of one of the surrounding buildings. After crossing a few rooftops, I came to a stop and put the girl down again, with her butt on the hard surface of that roof.

She looked shocked at me, but I was no less surprised than she. Because of the jump, her hood had fallen back, revealing her face and her long, light blue locks.

I took a step back. "Y-you're the princess!" When she didn't say anything, I continued. "What are you doing out in the streets, playing city guard?"

The look in her eyes hardened. "That's none of your business. More important is: why are you stealing?"

Again she surprised me. She was actually interested? Probably not. It sounded more like a rhetoric question anyway. Or she was just scared and said that, hoping I wouldn't kill her. Not that I was planning on that. I had the princess, I could get a lot of money for her return. Still, I sat down next to her. "I don't have a choice." She looked at me, her eyes asking to explain myself. I shook my head. "You wouldn't understand. You sleep on a golden bed with soft pillows and silken sheets. You only have to wave your hand and you get what you want."

"That's not true!" she said, after which she soon fell silent again, a slight blush of embarrassment covering her cheeks. "My bed isn't made of gold…"

I snorted. Spoiled brat.

"But I wouldn't mind sleeping in the same bed as you! Ah, no, I mean…" The blush became deeper. "In the same _kind_ of bed."

I was unimpressed by her Freudian slip. "That is you assuming that I have a bed." I stood up, offering her a hand so she could do the same.

She looked at me in shock, then looked at my hand and cast a look at the sky. I followed her gaze, but there was nothing more than a single falcon swirling beneath the sun. Her look was back on me and her face showed confusion. She remained seated however. "You– you don't have a bed?"

I raised my eyebrows. "What, you think I steal for fun?" Well, a little, I answered my own question in the privacy of my mind. "I steal to survive. I sleep between two thin sheets on a stone floor!"

She covered her mouth with her hand. "Are you serious?" She surprised me with her genuinely worried face. I hadn't expect her to care. "But why don't you just get a job? Like everyone else?"

I shook my head. She didn't understand, but I believed she would, if I just explained it to her. "People wouldn't want to hire me. I've got a reputation. Besides, if they did, they would want to ring me." I had seen those poor bastards with their seastone ring around their neck, totally ripped from their freedom.

"But… then you wouldn't _need_ your powers, right?" the blue haired girl asked cautiously.

"It's wrong to take someone's freedom away, princess." I reached out my hand again. "Come on, you're coming with me."

She looked a little insecure when she looked up at me. "What about your parents?" she asked, slowly getting up by herself, ignoring my offered help completely.

I took my neglected hand back and huffed. "They're dead. Have been, ever since I was born."

"_Princess Vivi!"_ Suddenly there was a gigantic shadow looming over us and the next moment an enormous falcon landed on the rooftop, quickly turning into a man. "Are you alright?" he asked the girl as he rapidly moved her away from me. He pulled his sword and pointed the tip dangerously at me.

"No, Pell! I'm fine!" The princess laid an assuring hand down on her savior's arm. "Let him go."

I scanned the situation. This guy had devil fruit powers, so he was probably a high ranked guard. But this man was a zoan-type and also didn't seem to have anything that could really harm me, so I didn't worry too much.

"But Your Highness,…" the bird-guy protested.

"Let him go for now," the royal heir said with a stern voice. "He didn't harm me. And I want to go home."

The man gave me a warning look, but then put his sword away. He turned into his falcon form again, let the princess climb his back and stretched his wings. Within a few seconds they were out of sight.

Well, it was unfortunate my planned hostage had gotten away, but at least I still had the money. I looked over the edge of the rooftop to check whether the ground was clear and jumped down when I didn't see anybody.

I waited a few seconds for my eyes to get accustomed to the darkness of yet another shadowed alley. I loved it that Alubarna had so many dark alleyways, which made it easy to navigate through the city without being noticed.

Suddenly I heard an appraising whistle behind me. When I turned around I saw a black haired woman coming out of the shadows, walking towards me. She looked me over – definitely liking what she saw, if her face was anything to go by – so I decided upon doing the same. She was not extraordinary pretty. Even though she wore quite a lot of make-up, she couldn't hide her rather masculine features. She also wore Eastern looking clothes, making her stand out more.

She licked her lips seductively. "Well, look at you."

I almost choked because of the surprise. That voice was definitely one that belonged to a man. But she still looked like a woman.

"What does a handsome guy like you do, sneaking around in a dark alley?"

I looked dumbfounded at him/her. She was flirting with me, so she was probably a woman… though not necessarily. There was only one way to find out… okay, maybe two. "Are you a man or a woman?" I asked cautiously.

The other was standing right before me now and quickly got a folded fan from out of her kimono – was that what it was called? – that collided with my head within a second. It hurt more than I had expected.

"How dare you ask such a question?!" he/she said offended.

I rubbed the painful spot on my head. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to know… but now I see clearly that you are a woman." Though a very flat-chested one, I thought after further inspection.

I received another hit with the fan. "You should think less gender-specific! I'm both man and woman, but my body is male."

"Ouw! I'm sorry!" I apologized, though I was annoyed he had to hit me all the time. "So what do you want from me?" I asked, wanting to go home before my earlier pursuers came after me again.

The transvestite smiled. "Oh, I would like a whole lot of things from you, Ace," he said with a wink. I kept looking impatiently, not impressed that he knew my name. I was infamous after all. But seriously, did he think he could seduce me or anything?

When I didn't respond, he sighed. "What is your relationship with the princess?"

I frowned. "What are you talking about?"

The man rolled. "I saw you on the roof. Why did she stop the royal guard from attacking you?"

"How should I know?" I said shrugging. "Maybe she realized he couldn't win and would only end up as a roasted bird?" I suggested. "Why do you want to know? Who are you anyway?"

He brushed a strand of black hair behind his ear and smiled. "My name's Izo. But the princess seemed to like you – I mean, duh, you're hot – so… if she likes you, or even if she just has sympathy for you, we could make use of that. We could –"

"I didn't ask what your name was, I asked who you _are_!" I snapped. What the hell was this guy babbling about?

The crossdresser looked taken aback. "I'm just like you… living from the street, stealing to get by."

Knowing this made me relieved, since he wasn't working for or with the government in any way, but at the same time it made me cautious. Thieves weren't the most trustworthy people, after all.

"Is that what you wanted to know?" the feminine man asked, cocking his eyebrow.

I nodded. "For now."

"Alright. Now, about the princess… You could become friends with her and get access to the palace and all its gold, and we could be rich within no time."

Sucking on my lip, I thought about this. "It isn't a very bad idea. But… why would I need _you_ for that?"

Izo looked surprised. "Because together we stand stronger! We can back each other up."

I raised my eyebrows. "I'm not convinced."

Suddenly the man pulled a gun out of nowhere and placed it against the underside of my chin, before I could react. "Think again. You need someone to help you, if something goes wrong."

"Bullets won't hurt me, you know that," I said, giving him a look as if he were stupid.

He brought his face close to mine. "You've never tasted these bullets before, honey." He looked deadly serious, not a single trace of insecurity in his eyes. What was so special about those bullets of his? Did they have some kind of seastone in it? Did seastone bullets even exist? Izo was probably just bluffing. But still… what if he wasn't? I didn't want to take the risk.

Sighing I gave in. "Alright. We'll work together in operation Princess."

* * *

TBC~

_aah, so, still no Marco (as I had said), but hopefully you liked Vivi and Izo ^^ (and Thatch of course, since he wasn't properly introduced in the last chapter)_

_Please leave a review to tell what you thought about the chapter~! It encourages me to write faster :P_


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